Abbas, Sending Mixed Messages Is Not Peacemaking

(Ha'aretz)
Abraham Foxman -
For more than two years, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas - who is internationally portrayed as the moderate, peace-seeking, representative leader of the Palestinian people - has ignored repeated calls by Israel to return to negotiations, choosing instead to pursue counterproductive unilateral measures to promote Palestinian statehood.
At the UN General Assembly, Abbas once again charged the Jewish state with everything from racism and genocide to ethnic cleansing. He made no mention of the violent terrorist actions committed by Hamas and other Gaza-based Palestinian factions against Israel, including last month's eight-day rocket bombardment of Israeli cities and towns.
The Palestinian Authority must cease its stubborn refusal to negotiate with Israel and put an end to incendiary rhetoric and imagery. They must acknowledge that, as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton so aptly put it, the road to Palestinian statehood runs through Jerusalem and Ramallah, and not New York. The writer is National Director of the Anti-Defamation League. 2012-12-28 00:00:00Full Article